Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, a process for the synthesis of hydrocarbons at elevated temperatures from mixtures of hydrogen and carbon monoxide contacted over a catalyst constituted of one or more Iron Group metals supported on a support or carrier, with or without added promoters, is well known. Generally, the catalyst is prepared by cogellation, coprecipitation, or impregnation techniques, typically by impregnation. In accordance therewith, a porous support or carrier, e.g., silica, is precalcined, contacted one or more times with an aqueous solution of a compound of the Iron Group metal, e.g., cobalt nitrate, and generally one or more times with an aqueous solution of a promoter, or promoters, e.g., a compound, or compounds of ZrO.sub.2, TiO.sub.2, Re, or a Group VIII noble metal. Alternatively, the precalcined support can be coimpregnated one or more times with a solution of a compound, or compounds of both the Iron Group metal compound and the promoter, or promoters. After the impregnation, or coimpregnation, the metal-containing support is dried to remove the liquid, calcined to convert the Iron Group metal to an oxide, and then reduced with hydrogen to convert the oxide components of the catalyst to metals. The precalcination and calcination steps are generally carried out at temperatures ranging from about 250.degree. C. to about 600.degree. C., or higher, for sustained periods. Whereas catalysts made at an earlier date which did not contain the promoter generally possessed good C.sub.5.sup.+ selectivity, the activity of the catalyst in conducting a Fischer-Tropsch reaction was relatively low. The addition of the promoter generally increased the activity of the catalyst while the catalyst retained its selectivity. Albeit the later catalysts possessed relatively good activity, Fischer-Tropsch catalysts of yet higher activity are needed to meet the demands of the commercial world.